the public
noun
: the people of a country, state, etc.
the American public
The beach is open to the public.
The general public is in favor of the law.
Members of the public called for the mayor's resignation.
Examples of the public in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Though a functioning part of the town of Gosnold, the island is privately owned with only certain areas accessible to the public, per The Globe.
—
Madison E. Goldberg, PEOPLE, 23 Oct. 2025
The data is backed by over a dozen datasets from the public and private sectors.
—Ignacio Calderon, USA Today, 22 Oct. 2025
Editors then vet the nominations and set aside a list of nominees to ask the public to vote on for a period of four weeks.
—Kelli Arseneau, jsonline.com, 22 Oct. 2025
Arizona’s open meeting law requires municipalities to make agendas available to the public at least 24 hours before a regular meeting is scheduled to begin.
—Shawn Raymundo, AZCentral.com, 22 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for the public
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Madison E. Goldberg, PEOPLE, 23 Oct. 2025
The data is backed by over a dozen datasets from the public and private sectors.
—Ignacio Calderon, USA Today, 22 Oct. 2025
Editors then vet the nominations and set aside a list of nominees to ask the public to vote on for a period of four weeks.
—Kelli Arseneau, jsonline.com, 22 Oct. 2025
Arizona’s open meeting law requires municipalities to make agendas available to the public at least 24 hours before a regular meeting is scheduled to begin.
—Shawn Raymundo, AZCentral.com, 22 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for the public
Cite this Entry
“The public.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/the%20public. Accessed 26 Oct. 2025.
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